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FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: FOI-723-2023
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 4th August 2023, and clarification received on 8th August 2023, as follows:
Please release details of all reported incidences of children and teenagers being blackmailed in relation to naked photos they’ve either sent to the subsequent blackmailer or the latter has obtained via some other means.
Please break the figures down by number of incidences per month between June 2020 and June 2023.
Clarification received:
With regards this FOI request which was sent at 16:20 on 4th August:
"Please release details of all reported incidences of children and teenagers being blackmailed in relation to naked photos they’ve either sent to the subsequent blackmailer or the latter has obtained via some other means.
Please break the figures down by number of incidences per month between June 2020 and June 2023."
I would like to amend the age group to 0-17 years.
Please find the Warwickshire Police response set out below. When reviewing the response please note that the information was obtained by searching for all Blackmail crimes, recorded during the period 1st June 2020 and 31st May 2023, where the victim is aged 17 and under. The resulting records were then manually reviewed to establish whether the victim has been blackmailed in relation to naked photos they have either sent or which have been obtained via other means.
Response: I can advise that the requested information is held; however, it is not suitable for disclosure by way of the breakdown requested. Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires Warwickshire Police, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which:
(a) states that fact,
(b) specifies the exemption in question and
(c) states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.
The exemption applicable in this case is:
Section 40(2) Personal Information
Section 40 is an absolute class based exemption, which does not require evidence of the harm disclosure would cause and does not require consideration of a public interest test. That being said, where Section 40(2) is engaged, in order to make the exemption absolute there needs to be evidence that a Data Protection Principle would be breached by disclosure.
This exemption is engaged where disclosure of information relates to personal data of a third party or could lead to the identification of an individual, either from that information alone or combined with any other information from within the Police Service or public domain. In this case, due to extremely low numbers in some months, and information already being specific to individuals aged under 18, providing the requested information, broken down by month, is likely to lead to the identification of an individual. Such a disclosure would breach individuals’ rights under the Data Protection Act 2018, in particular Article 5(1) of the GDPR which states that personal data shall be processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner in relation to the data subject.
This letter serves as a refusal notice under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act in relation to information being provided broken down by month and, instead, information has been provided by a quarterly split for 2021 and 2022 and for Jun to Sep and Oct to Dec of 2020 and Jan to Mar and Apr to May of 2023.
Year/Month |
Total |
2020* |
8 |
Jun to Sep |
2 |
Oct to Dec |
6 |
2021 |
20 |
Jan to Mar |
8 |
Apr to Jun |
5 |
Jul to Sep |
4 |
Oct to Dec |
3 |
2022 |
45 |
Jan to Mar |
6 |
Apr to Jun |
15 |
Jul to Sep |
4 |
Oct to Dec |
20 |
2023** |
34 |
Jan to Mar |
23 |
Apr to May |
11 |
Grand Total |
107 |
*From 01/06/2020
**To 30/06/2023
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is as accurate as possible.
Your attention is drawn to the below which details your right of complaint.
Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write or email the Freedom of Information Unit quoting the reference number above.
Yours sincerely
Freedom of Information Officer
Freedom of Information Unit
Warwickshire Police
PO Box 4
Leek Wootton
Warwickshire
CV35 7QB